The Love Algorithm
by EvenBiggerBang
Summary: After he has come to a disturbing conclusion, Sheldon goes to apartment 4B to ask Penny for help..The result is The Love Algorithm which Sheldon wants to effectuate to win Leonard's heart..
1. Chapter 1

_My first FF on TBBT and also the first story published by me... I'm soo excited! :D I hope you'll enjoy reading it and you won't think that anyone is too much OOC! And I'm no native speaker but I hope there won't be too many mistakes :(_

**The Love Algorithm **

_.Knock. Knock. Knock._

"Penny?"

_.Knock. Knock. Knock._

"Penny?"

_.Knock. Knock. Knock._

"Penny?"

The young waitress sighed when she heard her neighbor knocking but she knew that simply ignoring him would not have any effect. She slowly walked towards the door to open it, only to have a reproachful Sheldon staring at her.

What's wrong?" He asked and Penny gave him a confused look.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, usually it takes you approx.8 seconds to open the door when someone is knocking at it. Today it was 13.5 seconds." The physicist explained so fast that Penny almost could not follow. She felt the urge to tell him that he was lucky she even opened it for him but after all these years she knew better than arguing with the eccentric person in front of her.

"I'm sorry, Sheldon!" she sighed. "How can I help you?"

"Well," Sheldon began hesitantly, "As you know, I have an IQ of 187… I'm a genius, I went to College when I was 11, and I've become a PhD when I was 16…" Penny coughed slightly. "… Nevertheless I have to admit that I'm lacking experience when it comes to social interactions. So I decided to- and I never thought that my superior self would have to say that once in a lifetime- ask you, Penny, for help."

Silence. Said blonde woman stared at the genius while two opposing feelings arose inside her. On the one hand, she felt superior to Sheldon for the first time, she had the triumph of him needing her help. One the other hand, she saw him plucking at his trousers. He was nervous. Very nervous in fact. The usually self-confident man had to have a serious problem.

"Come inside and take a seat, Sweetie" she said in a soft voice. "I promise I'll try my best." The scientist thanked her with a shy smile and sat down the chair he considered to be the optimal spot. "What is your question about?" Sheldon looked at her as if he was now regretting his visit. He remained silent until Penny asked him a second time.

"Recently I started to notice a change in my behavior and my feelings towards a certain person. Unlike in my normal interactions with this person, there is now a certain… nervousness. So I did my research on the internet and I might have found a plausible explanation for the conundrum."

Penny suppressed a squeak. She felt a smile blooming on her face and tried hard not to voice her thoughts but the situation was so… unexpected that she simply had to say it: "You are in love, Sheldon." Addressed man yanked his head up. "How did you know? It took me weeks to come to this conclusion!"

"Sweetie… This is what you came here for, isn't it? I know about these things better than you do! But what's more important: WHO IS IT?" the blond waitress asked, suddenly very excited about the whole conversation. Even though her neighbor was not always easy to deal with, he had become a dear friend to her whom she would not want to miss.

Sheldon gave her a disapproving look. He could not understand her excitement since his discovery had driven him somewhat depressed. "Do you really think, I'm going to tell you? - Of course not! Anyways, I'm here to have a final test. It is not as easy as one might think to find reasonable scientific reports on the feeling of love and the approximately 42 quizzes I took- mostly from magazines for teenage girls or immature women- were no help either." Penny chuckled at the thought of Sheldon reading the Teen Magazine. The scientist continued unwaveringly. "But I managed to prepare a list of symptoms and I want you to put them in the right order, starting with the most important one: nervousness when talking to the object of one's secret affections, enjoying the moments when being alone with or in the center of attention of said person, not wanting to change the partner but willingly accepting his faults, feeling the urge to touch or be touched by the one you love, having butterflies in.." "Sheldon?" Penny interrupted him softly. She had gotten a sneak peek on the list, seeing it was very long. The physicist obviously not only wanted to put the "symptoms" in the right order but afterwards grade them from 1 for "Less marked" to 5 "Intensively marked". "If you feel all those symptoms, no matter how strong they are- which can differ from time to time- you are definitely in love, Sweetie."

Sheldon sighed desperately. "… But love is only a chemical imbalance in the brain, Penny!"

He did not even convince himself by saying that and they both knew it. "There is nothing wrong with being in love, Sheldon! And think about the symptoms! Think about how happy you are when being with your love! It's not only chemistry, Sweetie, and you know it.. Why don't you allow yourself to be happy?" the blonde asked in a tone which was slightly sad. "But I was happy!" The scientist insisted. "Being in love is difficult. And I had a very good time living without it." "You'll have an even better one when being in a relationship with your love, Swee…!" "NO, I WON'T! THIS IS RIDICULOUS, PENNY! HOW CAN YOU EVEN THINK MY LOVE WILL BE REQUITED! IT WON'T BE, SO JUST HELP ME TO UNDERSTAND AND THEN GET RID OF IT!"

Sheldon's unusual temper tantrum made his friend and neighbor cringe. Sheldon usually didn't even notice if someone was upset. He had never yelled at anyone before. The physicist breathed heavily, suddenly looking embarrassed and guilty. "I'm very sorry, Penny! Even I know it's impolite to ask you for help and then yell at you!" Then silence. It was the first time Penny saw Sheldon cry.

2 hours later when the scientist left the apartment and walked across the hallway, he looked more confident than anyone had ever seen him. While Penny had comforted him, the name of his secret love had slipped out. Penny had shrieked for about 2 minutes but then they developed an infallible strategy. The friendship algorithm had not really worked but Sheldon decided that Kripke did not count. The love algorithm was perfect and the physicist was willing to effectuate it. "Shelly, where have you been?" Leonard asked when he entered. "You've been absent for almost 3 hours, I was worried about you!" Sheldon smiled happily. Leonard cared for him. Step 1 of the plan was accomplished. "You'll find out soon!"

Although Sheldon considered all sorts of germs to be extremely disgusting and dangerous, he decided to take care of his roommate when Leonard caught a cold. Penny had told him that he needed to show his love how much he cared about him. So the scientist brewed tea, made chicken soup and sang "Soft Kitty" as often as it was necessary to make his roommate feel better. He had called Dr. Gablehouser and was allowed to stay at home and take care of Leonard. Sheldon decided to look after him because his friend showed a dangerous tendency to ignore his fever which had lead to a collapse. They spent a week full of video games, laughter and even after all this time, there were new character traits and hobbies to discover. Both of them were almost a little depressed when Leonard had recovered.

"Leonard?" Sheldon asked on their next ride to work. "Yes, Sheldon?" "How about skipping Halo Night this Wednesday? I carefully considered the options and I would rather prefer to spend some time with you in private!" The smaller scientist almost overlooked a red traffic light, causing Sheldon to give him a harangue. Leonard did not catch a single word of it. No Halo Night on Wednesday? Had his roommate probably also caught a cold and gotten fever? Sheldon never changed his habits. _Never_. He always insisted on them. "But Shelly, I thought Wednesday is _always _Halo Night?" Said scientist sighed, obviously annoyed, even though Leonard slightly noticed another emotion that he could not really define. "You always say that I should be more spontaneous! Now I do as you please and you are still complaining! Seriously, Leonard, I will not allow you to call _me_ difficult ever again!"

It was Wednesday evening. For the first time in his life, Sheldon felt the urge to whistle happily but he reminded himself of the "No-Whistling-Clause" in the Roommate Agreement. If he broke it… Holy Spock, it would lead to pure anarchy! Leonard had finally agreed to go out instead of playing Halo with Howard and Raj. Their friends had both been what Sheldon assumed to be surprised. But since he never cared about other people's feelings or emotions in general, he simply ignored their questions and ended the calls. He was confronted with a more serious problem than two pushy, bored geeks having no other plans on a Wednesday night than playing Halo. What was he supposed to wear? A Green Lantern Shirt? A Flash Shirt? They both looked casual, not too overdressed, not too obvious. On the other hand, this was a very special night. Sheldon picked out his shirts, carefully putting them onto his bed, sorted by color, cut, overprint and how they were matching with his favorite trousers. After 1 hour, 36 minutes and 43 seconds the scientist finally decided to were a plain grey suit pants and a blue shirt which matched with the color of his eyes. It took him another 16 minutes and 59 seconds to critically check every aspect of his appearance. He took a deep breath, watching himself in the mirror. If he had not been so nervous, he might have shaken his head in disbelief. He was behaving so much unlike his usual controlled, disinterested, solitary self. Sheldon had always known that the chemical imbalance called 'love' made people do the most unreasonable things. But he never even considered this to happen to him and he never thought it would be this… The genius could not find a word to describe how he felt. He was so torn between happiness, fear, disbelief and longing. He knew that his behavior was foolish but- Spock damn it- this was the most important evening in his… "Sheldon? Are you ready to leave? We reserved a table for 9 p.m.!" Another deep breath. The sketch of the love algorithm appeared in front of his inner eye.

They spent a marvelous evening at a Thai restaurant, followed by a stop at the cinema to watch the new Batman movie. Sheldon lived through the week when Leonard had been ill and they had grown together in a way that the physicist never expected. He had already known his roommate for seven years but those seven days caused a never before seen change in their relationship. He sometimes caught himself not listening to Leonard's words but simply staring at his soft lips or admiring his appearance. Sheldon had never paid attention to anyone's clothes, not even to Leonard's but tonight his friend was so gorgeous that it sometimes took his breath away. Every time he laughed or accidentally touched his hand, the genius could feel his pulse quicken. Even a supersonic flight could not beat the acceleration he felt in his chest.

When they returned home, Leonard plunked down into his chair. He looked tired but his face showed a bright smile. "Thank you, Sheldon! Replacing Halo night by an activity two by two was certainly one of you best ideas! Have you noticed that even though we spent every evening of the week- ever since we were roommates- together, we never spent a night out without Raj and Howard? Tonight's atmosphere was so different from any other I ever felt during a night out." Said scientist was standing in the kitchen, smiling at the bottle of expensive red wine in his hand. He felt pure happiness growing in his heart, releasing a heat that expanded throughout his whole body. "I agree with your perception, Leonard. I also hold this evening in the highest regards." He heard Leonard chuckle. Sheldon took two wineglasses and went to the couch to sit down at his spot. The physicist was aware of his problems with responsible drinking but he knew that he needed a large amount of courage for the next and penultimate step of his love algorithm.

"Well, Leonard…" "Sheldon, what is the wine for?" "To drink, of course!" Sheldon sighed before starting a new attempt. "As I just said, I Already noticed a certain…" "Sheldon, I know, we're at home, but you also know that you shouldn't drink. You have a low tolerance for alcohol." "Don't worry, Leonard. What I was trying to say…" "Sheldon, seriously! Your hands are already trembling and…" The taller man put the bottle on the table, causing a noise that emphasized his anger. Leonard noticed it, quickly mumbled an apology and sipped at the wine he was given.

Sheldon felt his pulse quicken again when he looked right into Leonard's curious eyes. _Penultimate Step: Confess your feelings. _"What I was trying to say, Leonard, was that I also noticed a change in our relationship, mostly tracing back to the amount of time we spent together when you had caught a cold. I have to admit that I enjoyed these days and this evening in a way I have not experienced before. I keep them in my memory as some of the… happiest…moments in my whole lifetime." Leonard was stunned. Not only that Sheldon never revealed his thoughts about their friendship, the smaller scientist also heard his usually robotic, disinterested roommate talking about his feelings for the first time. Sheldon had already been happy when he found a rare comic book or when Leonard had given him the Batman cookie jar but this "happy "was different. The expression on his dialog partner's face told Leonard that this happiness came from the depth of Sheldon's heart.

"However," Sheldon continued after gulping down the glass of wine, "to me… this change is not only restricted to said period of time." Leonard suddenly sat up straight. What was his friend aiming at? "I have noticed another change in our interactions and after doing some research and asking Penny for help…" The smaller man was stunned for the second time this evening. Sheldon would never ask anyone for help. Leonard remembered his roommate's reaction to not knowing something and he had never seen Sheldon asking for help in seven years, simply because he was so convinced of his superiority. The idea of Sheldon asking PENNY for help, Penny- whom his roommate had always criticized for her educational level and behavior, was simply too unreal. Leonard was lost in thought but Sheldon's voice brought him back to reality. "… I came to a conclusion, Leonard." Sheldon took another deep breath. This was the moment, the key moment. "You know, I do not have much experience when it comes to feelings, Leonard, so to put it in a nutshell… After carefully studying the changes in our social interactions and my behavior, I have come to the conclusion that I… love you. I love you, Leonard."

Then it happened. Of all the possible reactions that Sheldon had included in his scenarios, the worst one occurred. Leonard laughed. Sheldon could proverbially feel his heart break into thousands of little, sharp pieces which cut him. He had silently apprehended that his feelings were a kind of ridiculous, but he had somehow managed to believe that his algorithm would work. Instead, he found himself sitting in front of Leonard with tear-dimmed eyes. He had never understood anyone's narrations about lovesickness. He could never see why people would lose their grip simply because their relationship had ended. He considered it to be exaggerated, an excuse for their failure. But now he knew better than that. Now he knew better.

Meanwhile, Leonard had calmed down. The whole scene was so totally absurd that he could not refrain from laughing. "You know, buddy! You really shouldn't drink anymore! We are both aware of the fact that you don't know _anything_ about emotions, Shelly! You-in love- with me! BAZINGA! Assuming that you will remember your confession tomorrow morning, you will sure be more embarrassed than you were the morning after the Chancellor's Awarding…" Leonard stood up and grabbed the bottle to carry it off. "Come on, buddy! Let me take this! You should really go to bed now!" The smaller physicist placed a kiss on Sheldon's head, not seeing the tears in his friend's eyes. "Nevertheless, I'm glad you enjoyed the progress in our friendship as well! ... Goodnight, Shelly!" And with that, Leonard left to go to his bedroom.

When he heard his friend closing the bedroom door, Sheldon wept freely.

**TBC? **(Well, only if you want it :))


	2. Chapter 2

**I'm back!**

**Thank you soo much for all your kind reviews! I'm glad you enjoyed reading my story! ^^**

**And thanks for your patience of course! There was a stupid series of events.. My PC being broken, the second part of the story being lost, university keeping me busy… But finally: here is the second part of "The Love Algorithm"! It's not very long but I hope you'll still be satisfied with the end of the story!**

When Sheldon did not get up the next morning at exactly 7am, Leonard became worried. Even though he assumed that his roommate might have a headache or some sort of hangover, Sheldon usually did not miss work or he at least got up to complain about being sick.

At 7.15 Leonard knocked at the other scientist's door. "Sheldon? Come on, buddy! It's Thursday morning 7.15 and 43 seconds! We have to go to work!" No reaction. "Sheldon? Are you sick? Sheldon? Come on, talk to me!" Since his roommate did not answer, the smaller man decided to enter the room, knowing that Sheldon never locked the door. He put his hand on the doorknob, when he suddenly heard a loud noise, causing him to step back. "Shelly? What was that? Are you ok?" Another heavy object hit the wooden door. Leonard's eyes grew wide. Sheldon never lost his temper. This had to be very serious. Leonard thought about last night's events and Sheldon's confession. He was probably very embarrassed and therefore did not want to see him. "Ok, I'll just tell Dr. Gablehouser that you're not well! I would stay with you to return last week's favor but I need special lab 3 for a very important experiment and I can only use it today! I'll spend the whole day in there but if you need something, just call me!" Leonard never thought he'd say something like that to a sick Sheldon. "The ingredients for a soup and the tea are in the cupbo…" Leonard was again interrupted by a loud noise. He came to the decision that he should better leave Sheldon alone, so he got dressed and left the apartment without any further word.

On the ride to work, Leonard's thoughts were still focused on Sheldon. He had seen Penny drunk. He had seen his mother drunk. Even though Beverly was very disciplined and cold, she had obviously acted stupidly that evening. The next image that popped up in his head was the one of Sheldon's speech at the Chancellor's Awarding. The taller man had undressed and told rather idiotic jokes that night. Could he really have been so drunk this time that he made up such strong feelings? Sheldon did not know anything about love! He had never even been interested in it! Still, Leonard could not forget the tone of Sheldon's voice, his trembling hands, the look in his eyes being so… troubled. The physicists had only drunk one glass of wine and even though Sheldon had gulped it down it was quite unrealistic that the alcohol had taken its full effect in about 5 minutes. Leonard's brain refused to allow the thought but could his friend have been serious about…? He was brought back down to earth with a bump when someone in the car behind him hooted the car horn. The traffic light had turned green about a minute ago.

When he arrived at work, he was immediately snowed under orders. Dr. Gablehouser came to remind him of the presentation he had to conduct for a delegation of Japanese physicists. Leslie needed his advice for her new experiment. The senior director came to ask for his newest results. Even during lunch he was forced to listen to Howard's complaints about his mother and his latest argument with Bernadette. Leonard did not have a single minute to be alone with his thoughts.

When he was done with all his projects it was already 6pm. Even though he was incredibly tired, Leonard did not feel the urge to go back to the apartment he lived in. By the time he had left the institute, the whole Sheldon issue had crashed into him again. He stood in front of his car, not sure what to do. It was Thursday. Everything was possible today.

After another 5 minutes, Leonard got into his car, started the engine and drove to the Pasadena Mall. During the next 2 hours he bought new clothes and got a haircut. He sat in a sprawling book store reading comics or just watching the people who were passing by. He ate pizza at a new Italian restaurant and decided that he had not felt that much… alive for a very long time. Even though he had enjoyed the week with Sheldon, the new sides of their friendship, he had noticed that after last night's events, he felt extremely exhausted. Leonard became aware of the fact that he had never cared for himself in the last years. His free time was geared to Sheldon's habits and inflexibility. Before moving into the apartment with the superior, arrogant, difficult Sheldon, he had lived at home with his "gifted" siblings and his sophisticated parents. He had never experienced any appreciation and was therefore so desperate to receive it that he simply had forgotten to please himself. For the first time in his life, he had done whatever he wanted to do. He had been spontaneous and he loved it. These two hours at the mall had given him more self-confidence that any guidebook he had ever read.

Leonard decided that going to the park to watch the sunset was the most suitable way to end this day. He sat down on a bench, watching businessmen hurrying and couples kissing. His thoughts went back to Sheldon and he felt oppressive sorrow arousing. What was the other man doing right now? Even though Leonard had avoided this topic to resurface during the afternoon, he knew somewhere in the back of his head that Sheldon had been serious when confessing his love for him. He recalled the situation over and over again. He used the psychological and anthropo-philosophical knowledge that his mother had rammed down his throat. He recalled everything he knew about his roommate. There was no chance he was wrong. Sheldon had been serious.

The realization hit him hard and his mind went blank for a few minutes. Of all the possible changes that his friend could possibly undergo, he had never thought that Sheldon would ever be in love. And since he was raised in a very Christian family, it had been very unlikely that he might fall in love with a man. With him. On the other hand, it was disturbingly logical. He knew Sheldon better than any other person did. Additionally, the other physicist had a naïve, childish side. He had never judged people for being homosexual and he probably would never do so because something deep inside him believed that if there was true love, it was unconditional. And now, Sheldon was in love. For the first time in his life. And he had laughed at him. He had left him alone. Leonard slumped to the ground, overwhelmed with guilt and hurt.

Leonard spent another hour at the park bench. His thoughts were spinning round. What was he feeling for Sheldon? How was he going to apologize? What would the traditional, the Christian Mary Cooper say? She had probably accepted that she would not have any grandchildren but could she accept him as her son-in-law? What would his own, over-analyzing mother say? Did she like Sheldon enough not to ruin their relationship? Why was he even considering being in a relationship with the other man? And again: what was he feeling for Sheldon? Leonard heard too many voices in his head, he saw too many scenarios. He was about to scream and kick a dust bin nearby, when suddenly an image popped up in his head.

It took place one week ago. He was sitting on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, a cup of tea standing in front of him. His roommate was sitting next to him and they were playing video games. Suddenly, he told a silly joke and Sheldon started to laugh hard. He heard the sound of his friend's laughter, saw his eyes shining. It had not been a particularly good or intelligent joke but Sheldon seemed to like it though. He had never seen the other man so relaxed and happy. A satisfied smile spread across his face.

He grabbed his jacket and hurried to his car. He decided it was time to go home and talk to Sheldon! When he opened the door, he stopped for a second. What was he going to say? What was Sheldon going to answer? What was going to happen? What would their relationship look like after this conversation? Once again, he saw the image of himself and Sheldon in the living room of their apartment in front of his inner eye. The voices in his head ran dry. He smiled once again, entering the car.

How about being spontaneous again?


End file.
